Sustainability: Human Factors
RESEARCH SPOTLIGHT
Effective technology is available to move the needle on sustainability. The challenge is to implement these solutions quickly and at scale.
That’s why USC Dornsife is thinking differently. Our researchers explore how to overcome the economic, political, and psychological challenges that stand in the way of a sustainable future.
![Illustration of a doctor and patient.](https://dornsife.usc.edu/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/A-Novel-Approach_Top-1920x1080-1-768x432.webp)
A Novel Approach
Narrative medicine uses humanities tools to train medical students to be better listeners — and as a result, better doctors.
Aug. 27: How Your Diet Shapes Your Brain
Join this live discussion with USC Dornsife researchers to learn about how our diet, gut, and microbiome interact to impact the mind and body throughout life. Moderated by Dana G. Smith ’09, reporter for The New York Times.
![Dornsife Dialogues: Gut Feelings](https://dornsife.usc.edu/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/51_GutFeelings__Newsletter_Events-768x768.png)
‘Mercury Bomb’ Threatens Millions as Arctic Temperatures Rise
With Arctic permafrost melting at a record pace, vast stores of toxic mercury put the food chain — and communities that depend on it — in grave danger. USC Dornsife scientists find a better way to assess the hazard.
![A 2022 drone image of the Yukon River and its floodplain downstream from Beaver, Alaska, shows accumulations of sediments, which harbor the toxic metal mercury.](https://dornsife.usc.edu/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/mercury_arctic_west_top-1800x1800-1-768x768.jpg)
Curiosity at Work
Stand Out, Together
At USC Dornsife you’ll study the things you love the most. You’ll explore ideas that you’ve never thought about before. You’ll learn how to make sense of the world from all different angles. And, as part of our community, you will help to define a dynamic academic environment focused on improving lives and the world around us.
Meet the Students
USC Dornsife students demonstrate an impressive combination of academic excellence, accomplishment, creativity, and hard work. Each and every student is hand-selected because they bring something special and unique to our community.
A Brighter Future
Isabella Pangilinan Environmental Studies majorUSC Dornsife student Isabella Pangilinan is passionate about finding solutions to some of our world’s most pressing challenges like climate change and social and economic inequity. The multidisciplinary courses offered through her major are preparing her for a career in environmental law.
The Power of “And”
Joshua Senior Biological Sciences major, East Asian Languages and Cultures minorUSC Dornsife student Joshua Senior is studying to become a neurosurgeon. He explains how his liberal arts education at USC Dornsife prepares him for his career goals – and for life.
A Trojan Family Like No Other
Victoria Quon-Chow Human Biology major, Nutrition and Health Promotion minorAs a student at USC Dornsife, Victoria Quon-Chow is bouyed by the support of the Trojan Family as she prepares to become a doctor.
Unprecedented Access to Academic Expertise
Public Exchange fast-tracks collaboration between academic researchers and the public and private sectors to define, analyze, and solve complex problems that organizations face. Through our first-of-kind model, we amplify social impact by making academic expertise more easily accessible than ever before.
![man in food bank sorting through items with full shelves behind him. Public Exchange Logo in the front of the image](https://dornsife.usc.edu/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/px-homepage-768x768.jpg)
Stand Out With Purpose
USC Dornsife
USC COMPASS is guiding the way to a career in stem cell science ➡️ 🧫
The USC COMPASS (Creating Opportunities through Mentorship and Partnership Across Stem Cell Science) Program prepares undergraduate students for careers in stem cell biology and regenerative medicine though an intensive two-year program during their junior and senior years>
After completing this program, Scholars will possess a unique understanding of how the body’s own developmental and repair mechanisms can restore damaged cells, tissues and organs. Scholars will be poised to enter the growing stem cell biotechnology field, apply to graduate programs, or engage in other academic, clinical, or business efforts.
Learn more at compass.usc.edu.
![A student in a lab coat and safety goggles holding a pipette](https://dornsife.usc.edu/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/USC_DCLAS_Science_Class_20221021_21-320x320.jpg)